I hope you guys had great holidays! I know I did. Important announcement at the end of this chpter!

Korra left school the next Friday slightly empty.

Not that things weren't going great; it was the complete opposite (if you ignored the fact that midterm exams had just culminated). After the winning basketball game the past Friday, Korra's family and friends had congratulated her endlessly, and her parents had asked her what she wanted to do to celebrate. They ended up going to a brunch as a family the next day, since the senior was way too tired to do something on the Friday night.

Iroh had slapped her on the back before leaving, and Asami hugged her tightly; before Korra left with her parents, she saw Mako talking to some official-looking people with university symbols on their hats.

Hmm. Interesting.

All that great stuff was said and done, but Korra felt empty because basketball season was over. No more practices. No more games. It had been the last season of basketball she'd ever have in her high school life.

But she was done with midterms and she was done with her first semester of senior year, so Korra decided to look on the upside of things.

The next day, the blue-eyed girl decided to pick her gym routine back up again, seeing how her schedule was not that chock-full anymore.

The blue-eyed got a call from Asami right when she was finishing her last set with the free weights; putting the weight down, the girl answered the phone as she walked towards the locker rooms.

"Hey, Korra!" Asami's voice greeted.

"Hey," Korra returned. "What's up?"

"Just info on my dad's gala. It'll be the Saturday after Christmas. Oh, and it's really formal, so do you have anything you could wear?"

Korra bit her lip, taking her stuff out of the locker. "I don't think so."

"Well, in that case, I'll take care of it. Show up at my place a bit early, okay?"

"Thanks, Asami," Korra smiled. "You're the best!"

The senior almost didn't hear the doorbell through the music blasting her headphones, but luckily, she was taking them off just in time. Pouting, Korra wondered who it could be as she trekked down the stairs. Her parents were out at work, leaving the girl home alone that day.

The girl was definitely surprised to see Mako at the door.

"Hey!" she greeted, trying to disguise her confusion at his surprise visit.

"Hi, Korra," Mako responded. He was grinning from ear to ear, which was pretty abnormal for someone so stoic as him. Korra raised an eyebrow, curious.

"Can I come in?" the guy asked after a moment.
"Oh! Right. Come on in," the blue-eyed girl replied, opening the door wider.

Mako followed Korra on the way to the family room. "Cool place," he commented, pointing to an exotic painting on the wall as they sat down. "That from India?"

"Yep," Korra answered, crossing her legs beneath her. "It's been in the house as long as I can remember." She looked up, raising her eyebrows. "So what's up?"

The teenage guy smiled, pulling out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. Korra opened it up once Mako handed it to her.

"Congratulations, you have been accepted to…" Korra mumbled along with the letter as she read. Suddenly, she looked up at Mako.

"This is an acceptance letter," the girl started.

"Yeah," Mako breathed, his grin not faltering.

"…To the honors college?!" Korra finished, a smile growing on her face.

The guy nodded, letting out a small laugh. "I got accepted to the local university. Full scholarship on everything- whoa!"

The senior girl tackled Mako in a hug, laughing. "I'm so happy for you!" She congratulated, feeling him laugh against her neck.

"I am so glad Christmas is almost here," Korra heard Iroh mutter behind her as they wiped down the tables for the day.

"You have any plans?" she asked, spraying down a table. The café was off for the holidays, which made Korra pretty happy- she had a whole two weeks to herself now.

"Nothin' special. Driving up to see my family and stuff," Iroh replied, turning to face the girl.

A jingle sounded, signaling that someone had entered the café. Iroh rolled his eyes, turning around.

"I'm sorry, but we're closed- Tina?!"

Korra couldn't see anything from her position, but she heard a girl laugh and Iroh sputter in surprise. Definitely curious, the senior girl made her way to the entrance of the café- where she saw Iroh hugging some girl who looked about the same age as him.

"Should I get a menu out, or…?" Korra asked, confused.

Her boss glanced up at her, pulling away from the girl's embrace after a second. "This is Tina," Iroh introduced, smiling at the girl.

"Nice to meet you!" She chirped. Tina had short blonde hair and was pretty petite, with an angular look to her features.

"I'm Korra," the senior introduced herself with a smile.

"Tina's a friend of mine," Iroh said. Turning to the girl, he added, "You probably drove a while to get here, huh?"

"Two hours," Tina shrugged. "But it was totally worth it. I really wanted to surprise you!" She grinned at Iroh, and Korra couldn't help but note that Tina seemed completely taken by him.

"It's great you're here," the guy smiled. And then he took his hand out and grabbed Tina's.

Korra's smile dropped.

"Uh…I'm going to put the cleaning stuff away," she excused. "Bye, Iroh, happy holidays." Walking back to the employee room, Korra wanted to kick herself for suddenly feeling bitterness towards Tina. There was nothing to hate the blonde girl for, but…

There was always something, when it came to Iroh.

The week passed by, with Christmas this year being especially great for Korra (her uncle and creepy cousins didn't come, for once, making it an actually enjoyable family get-together). On Saturday, the girl head out to Asami's early in the afternoon, per the friend's request.

"Great, you're here," Asami greeted when Korra entered. The blue-eyed girl took time to admire the house – it was a mansion, with spiraling staircases and multiple hallways.

"Nice place," Korra complimented.

The raven-haired girl rushed Korra into a spare bedroom, where a dress was laid out on the bed.

"I had to estimate for size, but I think it's about right," Asami commented, biting her lip. "Do you like it?"

Korra couldn't help but gape at the dress laid out; it was gorgeous, but it looked so expensive.

"Whoa…don't tell me you bought this for me," Korra started.

"Uh, yeah, I did," Asami blinked, oblivious.

"At least let me pay you back," the blue-eyed girl said, reaching into her purse. "I mean, it must have cost a fortune-"

"Don't worry about it!" Asami said, stopping Korra's hand. "I'm just really grateful you're coming. You don't have to pay a friend back on anything." She smiled at Korra, leaving the girl no choice but to comply.

"Fine. But I owe you one," the girl pouted.

The green-eyed heiress laughed. "I guess you do. Now let's get you all prepped up, shall we?"
-

Two hours later, Korra was pulling the dress over her head, careful not to mess up the hair or make up that Asami had worked so hard on.

"You ready?" Asami's voice called from outside the closet.

"Yep," Korra replied as she walked out. "How do I look?" She asked her friend.

Asami grinned. "Stunning. Come over here!" The green-eyed girl pulled her friend towards the full-length mirror in the corner of the bedroom.

Korra looked at herself, and she had to admit; Asami really did a number on her. The sleeveless dress sparkled in a deep shade of blue and reached the floor; the long earrings Asami had made her wear complimented the bun that her hair was in, with the slightly longer part of the bangs curled and let out. The necklace Korra wore pointed out her collarbones, and with the gray eyeshadow that Asami had cast over Korra's eyes, her blue eyes stood out more prominently.

"…Wow," she finally breathed, glancing back at her friend. "You are a fucking fashion wizard."

"What can I say," the raven-haired girl laughed, taking Korra's arm. "Now, you're going to have to wait a bit while I get ready, but we should be at the hall by seven."

"How many people are going to be there?"

"…I think it's safe to say that there's going to be a lot. I invited Mako and Bolin, though, and some of the sponsors' kids go to school with us, so you might see some people you know."

Korra nodded, still examining herself in the mirror. Suddenly, a thought hit her.

" 'Sami?"
"Mhm?"
"How do you know Mako and Bo anyway?"

From the mirror, Korra could see Asami put down the pin she was holding up and pause for a second. Then, she said, "A couple of years ago, I was…I was going through a phase."

The blue-eyed senior raised her eyebrows, turning around.

Asami sighed, and then met Korra's eyes. "My mom had just recently died and my father was swamped with legal issues, so I had a lot of time to myself. I didn't really make the best decisions, and…well, I felt really alone."

Korra just stared, blue eyes filled with concern.

"One day, I just broke down in the school hallway- I thought no one was around- and that's when Mako found me. He kept to himself a lot, even back then, so I was surprised when he asked me what was wrong. I ended up telling him, and…we just bonded on that."

Korra laid a hand on Asami's arm. "I'm glad you two found each other."

"Korra, I know the situation with you and Mako is kind of on the line between 'friends' and 'relationship' right now-"

"Pfff. What? No. Not at all. We're just friends-"

Asami gave Korra a look that said, are you serious. "You can't lie to save your life."

The girl sighed, shoulders slumped. "Okay, so maybe things are a bit touchy right now."

"I just think you should know- and it's really no big deal, but…Mako and I dated for a while."

Korra glanced up, surprised. "That's news to me," she mumbled.

Asami nodded. "It only lasted a couple of months, and it was a year or two ago- we're both completely over it- but I had no idea if you would mind that or not. I didn't think you would, but…"

Korra shook her head, giving her friend an assuring smile. "I don't. Like you said, it's really no big deal."

"I just had to get that off my chest." Asami smiled again. "Now, I should really go get ready. There's a lot of people I need to impress," she winked.

'A lot' was a major understatement.

Korra and Asami entered the hall together, the blue-eyed girl gaping at just how big the hall was- and at how many people there were.

"I had no idea the city had a place like this," the girl muttered to Asami, breathless.

"Yeah, it's amazing," the green-eyed girl agreed. "I have to go greet some people, but I'll catch up with you later!" And with that, Asami walked away to shake some hands, her heels clicking the tiles on the floor.

Korra blew out some air, now abandoned by her friend. Luckily, however, she didn't have to look far for a familiar face; turning around, she saw Bolin and immediately walked over to him.

"Hey, Bo," Korra tossed, grabbing a beverage off of one of the waiters' trays as she walked towards him.

"Wow, Korra, you look amazing!" Bolin complimented, throwing his arms up for a hug. Laughing, Korra took the invitation; past Bolin's shoulder, she saw Mako, who was making conversation with one of the Sato patrons.

"I'm going to go say hi to Mako," Korra told Bolin. Ignoring the eyebrow shimmy her friend did once he heard Mako's name, the blue-eyed girl made her way to the team captain just as he was finishing up the conversation.

"Hey," Korra greeted Mako with a smile.

He didn't reply right away; instead, he glanced at her face, and then at her dress, and then at her face again. The tips of his ears were getting red; Korra raised her eyebrows, amused.

"Um-"the guy finally managed to stumble out, his eyes still on her dress. "You look- wow," Mako ended, eyes meeting hers.

"Why thank you, kind sir," Korra teased, laughing slightly. "You look good too." Mako was set in a formal suit- the type that had a bowtie on the collar- with his hair slicked back, a change from the usual spike it held.

"How was your Christmas?" the guy asked Korra as they settled down on a table.

"I got a new gym bag. Oh, and a new phone!" Korra pulled her phone out, proving the fact. "What did you guys do?"

"Bo and I didn't have much to do, so we went ice skating."

Korra smiled. "I bruised myself all over the place, the first time I tried that sport."

Smirking, Mako replied, "I've done it four or five times. Still getting the bruises."

The two of them were laughing just as Bolin and Asami joined them. "So many people to greet," the racer girl groaned when she was seated. "I'm so glad you all came. Usually, I'd be bored to death by now."

"I think we should be thanking you," Bolin corrected.

"For sure. This place is amazing!" Korra cheered in.

The green-eyed girl smiled gratefully.

Two taps on Korra's shoulder got her attention; turning around to see who it was, her face automatically soured.

"Hey, Tahno," Korra half-heartedly greeted.

"Korra," he responded, looking utterly sorry. "Don't tell me you're still mad."

"Is this guy bothering you?" Bolin declared suddenly, eyeing Tahno.

"Oh, shut up," Tahno dismissed, waving his hand in Bolin's general direction. "I'm just catching up with our lovely mutual friend here."

Korra rolled her eyes. "Look, Tahno, we can talk later. Let's just enjoy this thing for right now, okay?"

The guy examined her, before shrugging. "Fine." He walked away, leaving the four friends alone.

"I didn't know you were friends with Tahno," Mako commented once Korra had turned back in her seat.

The girl shrugged. "He's okay, I guess. Can be a dick at times, though."

Mako snorted. "How about all the time," he muttered, but Korra pretended not to hear him.

After an amazing dinner, and a couple of deathly boring speeches, the dance floor was finally open and couples elegantly traced the ballroom floor to classic piano pieces and other completely unrecognizable musical scores.

Asami was swamped with dancing with certain sponsors and other fancy people, while Bolin was trying to make a move on a girl from another table. Korra watched for a while, amused, before deciding that she wanted to do something else.

"Wanna dance?" She asked Mako, who was beside her.

"Can you do ballroom dances?" He asked, skeptical.

"Nope. You?"
"Never tried."

The blue-eyed girl stood up, reaching out to Mako. "Let's try it, then!"

Mako rolled his eyes before accepting the hand, making the blue-eyed girl grin.

Once they reached the dance floor, though, Korra realized that she truly had no idea what to do.

"Okay, so it looks like I put my hand here," Mako muttered as he examined other dances. He placed his right hand on Korra's hips. "And you grab my arm with one hand and my other hand with yours-"

"Like this?" The girl gripped Mako's bicep.

"No- more gentle-" Korra could tell that the amber-eyed guy was biting his lip to try not to laugh. "Damn, Korra, you've got a death grip."

The girl pouted, easing her hand. "Better?"

The guy nodded, smiling at Korra's amateur status of dancing.

"Shouldn't we be closer?" Korra noted, observing the other dancers. Without waiting for a response, she pressed herself closer against Mako- and when she glanced up, she was so close to his face that, if she leaned in just a bit-

Shaking the thoughts away, the blue-eyed senior focused on instead trying to sway to the music with Mako. At one point, the other male dancers spun their partners around- but when Mako tried to do that to Korra without so much as a warning, the girl almost stumbled into him completely.

"What was that supposed to be?!" Korra whisper-yelled.

"A spin!" Mako replied at the same volume. "The other dancers are doing it!"

Suddenly, Korra couldn't take how terrible she and Mako were at the whole ballroom-dancing thing, and she burst out laughing.

The amber-eyed guy hesitated for just a second before joining her, and he pulled her off the dance floor, allowing the two of them to topple back to their chairs.

"Guess you're not as smooth as you think you are after all," Korra teased once she calmed down a bit.

"Are you kidding me?! You're one to talk." Mako grinned, shaking his head as he looked to the ceiling. "You're crazy."

"And you're an idiot." Korra grinned at him, feeling the warmth of his hand in her's.

It was then that she realized they were still holding hands. Korra pulled her grip slightly, testing Mako's reaction. He glanced down, suddenly aware that he was still holding her hand.

"Sorry," Mako mumbled quickly before letting go.

The girl looked away, biting her lip. Mako was irresistible to her, but they couldn't be in a relationship together. After all, he had said that she was too crazy for his stable little world.

"That was an amazing night. Thank you so much for inviting me," Korra said to Asami, hugging the girl once the night was over.

"No problem! We should hang out again before school starts up."

The basketball player groaned. "Ugh, don't remind me about school."

Waving a last goodbye to her friend, the girl got into her car just as her phone rang.

It was Iroh.

"Hey," Korra breathed into the phone when she picked it up. "What's up?"

"You busy right now?"

"No, why?" The girl pouted.

"Think you can come down to the bay pier? Just for five minutes. I need to talk to you."

"And it can't be over the phone?"

"…I mean, it could be, if you're really in a rush-"

Korra shook her head, before remembering that Iroh couldn't see her. "No, it's fine, I'll come," she said. "I was just- I'll be there soon."

Locking her car, Korra located Iroh's figure and made her way towards it. He was facing the beach, and the wind was whipping his jacket back slightly.

"Hey, can you make this quick, please?" Korra said once she walked up to him. Rubbing her arms, the girl cursed herself for forgetting that she was in a goddamn dress and wasn't really in beach attire at the moment.

"Oh- hey, look at you," Iroh greeted. "You look good."

"Thanks, I was at the Sato gala."

"My granddad was there," Iroh muttered, taking a sip from his beer. Korra raised her eyebrows at this.

"Don't you think drinking out in the open while you're still underage isn't the smartest idea?" she commented.

Her boss shrugged, taking another sip. "I look older than I am."

The girl dropped the topic. "So, why'd you call me down here?"

Iroh sighed, still not meeting Korra's eyes. "I'm quitting the café."

The girl's jaw dropped. "What?!" She pushed Iroh around so that he was facing her. "You can't do that. I love having you as boss! And what'll happen once you're gone? Tarrlok will come in, and it'll be completely miserable-"

Iroh shook his head. "You'll be fine. I need to focus more on my education, right now...kind of got a reality check from my parents. Besides, we'll still keep in touch. Right?"

Korra didn't respond right away. "There's no talking you out of this, is there?"

The guy bit his lip, shaking his head again.

She sighed, giving him a slight smile. "We'll definitely keep in touch. Don't think you can get rid of me that easily," Korra teased, lightly punching Iroh's shoulder. "Anyway, I should get going. I'll see you later, yeah?"

Iroh waved. "We'll meet up soon."

As Korra was walking away, she heard Iroh say, "And Korra?"
The girl turned around.

"You really do look beautiful."

So Mako got the most votes, Iroh in second.

***IMPORTANT****: This story is coming really close to it's end. I see about two or three chapters left, but that's about it. How I'm going to determine the winner of the overall story is: calculate ALL the votes this story got. The person who got the most votes throughout will be the person Korra ends up with!
I'm so glad you all decided to read my story :)

VOTING RULES RECAP!
Please vote for one person in particular!

It's not as much a 'vote' as it is a popular voice (no one gets 'voted off'- they can come back as love interests whenever they get votes.)

No negative votes will be counted (ex: 'I just don't want her to end up with Tahno!") you have to vote for a person in specifics.

You can vote a new person each chapter if you want. You can also vote for the same person each chapter. And of course, you have every right to vote for each chapter (that's kind of the idea :P). But you can only vote for one person per chapter!

Also, please make sure you vote under Chapter 11 if you want your vote to count for chapter 11! if you vote under the most recent chapter counting votes will be a lot easier :) Message me if you have any trouble with anything!

And please, please don't vote under 'guest'. Make an ff account or give yourself some sort of guest nickname if you can't/have trouble with it. I don't want one person to vote 3000 times under a guest account. It's not fair to the rest of us.

(Also, guys, don't slam other ships in your comments. Be respectful of everyone.)

Prominent love interests (you can vote outside of this if you want to) :
Mako

Iroh

Tahno

Asami

Bolin

***by voting outside, I mean voting for someone like Amon, Beifong, etc.